Information Architecture at Forecast

Improving the IA of Forecast

My role

UX research

Sketching

Mocking up and prototyping

Testing designs.

Objectives

A very data-heavy web app, the initial version that I was faced with, lacked a clear hierarchy, consistent menus or clear affordances. It was hard to extract meaning at a single glance. The first step was to fix the information architecture and data flow of the app.

Card Sorting

I collected all the data elements from version 1 and performed open card sorting exercises with stakeholders and users. From them, it emerged that the main, top-level features of the app should be Projects, Time, Scheduling and Reports.

Mock-ups

Once the different levels of information and their organisation were identified, I built several mockups in Balsamiq to define different options for navigation and page organisation. Low-fi prototypes of the different flows were tested and I decided upon the one that felt most natural to our target users.

Final Design

With the help of a branding agency, I created the final designs for the chosen mockups.